| Jon Robin Baitz's THE SUBSTANCE OF FIRE Added to Second Stage Theatre's 35th Anniversary Season | |
| Posted by: | Official_Press_Release 01:15 pm EST 01/17/14 |
|
| |
| Jon Robin Baitz’s THE SUBSTANCE OF FIRE Directed by Trip Cullman ADDED TO SECOND STAGE THEATRE’S 35TH ANNIVERSARY SEASON First New York Staging Since Original Off-Broadway Production 23 Years Ago Previews Begin Tuesday, April 22 Opening Monday, May 12 Second Stage Theatre (Carole Rothman, Artistic Director) has announced that JON ROBIN BAITZ’s drama, THE SUBSTANCE OF FIRE, will be part of the company’s current 35th Anniversary season. Directed by TRIP CULLMAN, THE SUBSTANCE OF FIRE will begin preview performances on Tuesday, April 22 and officially open on Monday, May 12. Casting and the full creative team will be announced at a later date. Acclaimed playwright JON ROBIN BAITZ (Other Desert Cities) made his New York playwriting debut at Second Stage Theatre in 1988 with his play, The Film Society, starring Nathan Lane, Laila Robins, and Daniel Gerroll. His prolific career also includes the plays Three Hotels, A Fair Country, Mizlansy/Zilinsky or “Schmucks,” Ten Unknowns, and The Paris Letter. Director TRIP CULLMAN returns to Second Stage Theatre where he staged the critically lauded productions of Bachelorette; Lonely, I’m Not; Swimming in the Shallows; and Some Men. Other directing credits include Choir Boy, Murder Ballad, Assistance, and The Drunken City, among others. “One of the highlights of the past 35 years has been the opportunity to introduce promising playwrights to New York audiences and I’m extremely proud to have given Robbie his first New York production back in 1988 with The Film Society,” said Founder and Artistic Director Carole Rothman. “It is a thrill to welcome him back to Second Stage for this 35th Anniversary season and to re-mount one of his most powerful plays in New York for the first time in over two decades.” From the acclaimed playwright of Other Desert Cities, comes a story of a family bound by a proud past but facing an uncertain future. Isaac Geldhart, the volatile and brilliant patriarch of his family publishing house, is stubbornly holding on to his place at the head of the company while his three children try to convince him to publish a desperately needed best-seller. Faced with a changing literary landscape and potential takeover of the company, the Geldhart children must either come to terms with their father and band together or break apart and forfeit the legacy he risked everything to build. Articulate and blessed with a lifesaving and cutting sense of humor, Isaac fights like a man with nothing to lose. The original production of The Substance of Fire premiered at Playwrights Horizons in 1991 in a production directed by Daniel Sullivan and starring Ron Rifkin and Sarah Jessica Parker. It subsequently transferred to Lincoln Center’s Mitzi Newhouse Theatre and was also made into a 1996 film. For subscription, group, or single ticket information, please call the Second Stage Box Office at 212-246-4422 or visit the company’s website, www.2ST.com. All performances are staged at Second Stage’s Tony Kiser Theatre, 305 West 43rd Street (just west of Eighth Avenue). * * * * * * ABOUT THE CREATIVE TEAM JON ROBIN BAITZ’s (Playwright) plays include Other Desert Cities (Pulitzer Prize Finalist 2012, Tony Nominee, Drama League Award, Outer Critics Circle Award), The Film Society, The End Of The Day, Three Hotels, A Fair Country (Pulitzer Prize finalist 1996), Mizlansky/Zilinsky, Ten Unknowns, and The Paris Letter, as well as a version of Hedda Gabler (Broadway, 2001). He created Brothers & Sisters, the TV series which ran for five seasons. Other TV work includes PBS’s version of Three Hotels, for which he won the Humanitas Award, and episodes of West Wing and Alias. He is the author of two screenplays; the film script for The Substance of Fire (1996), and People I Know (2002). He is a founding member of Naked Angels Theatre Company and is on the faculty of the MFA program at The New School for Drama, where he is Artistic Director of the BFA division. He is also a visiting professor at USC's Master of Professional Writing program. TRIP CULLMAN’s (Director) New York credits include Tarell Alvin McCraney’s Choir Boy (MTC), Julia Jordan and Juliana Nash’s Murder Ballad (MTC and Union Square Theater), Paul Weitz's Lonely, I'm Not (Second Stage), Leslye Headland’s Assistance (Playwrights Horizons), Adam Bock’s A Small Fire (Playwrights Horizons, Drama Desk nom.), Adam Rapp’s The Hallway Trilogy: Nursing (Rattlestick), Headland’s Bachelorette (Second Stage), McNally's Some Men (Second Stage), Bert V. Royal’s Dog Sees God (The Century Center), Bock’s The Drunken City (Playwrights Horizons), Weitz's Roulette (EST), Jonathan Tolins’s The Last Sunday In June (Rattlestick and Century Center), Bock's Swimming In The Shallows (Second Stage), Gina Gionfriddo’s U.S. Drag (stageFARM), and several productions with The Play Company. Select regional: John Guare’s Six Degrees of Separation (Old Globe), Richard Greenberg’s The Injured Party (South Coast Rep), McNally’s Unusual Acts of Devotion (La Jolla Playhouse), Christopher Durang’s Betty’s Summer Vacation (Bay Street Theater), Bess Wohl’s Touched (Williamstown Theater Festival), McCraney’s Choir Boy (Alliance Theater). * * * * * * ABOUT SECOND STAGE THEATRE Founded in 1979 under the leadership of Artistic Director Carole Rothman, SECOND STAGE THEATRE produces a diverse range of premieres and new interpretations of America’s best contemporary theatre, including Tiny Alice and Peter and Jerry by Edward Albee; The Good Times Are Killing Me by Lynda Barry; The Little Dog Laughed by Douglas Carter Beane; Little Murders by Jules Feiffer; The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee by William Finn and Rachel Sheinkin; A Soldier’s Play by Charles Fuller; Afterbirth: Kathy & Mo’s Greatest Hits by Mo Gaffney and Kathy Najimy; Becky Shaw by Gina Gionfriddo; Painting Churches and Coastal Disturbances by Tina Howe; Ricky Jay and His 52 Assistants and On the Stem by Ricky Jay; Next to Normal by Tom Kitt and Brian Yorkey; Living Out by Lisa Loomer; This Is Our Youth and The Waverly Gallery by Kenneth Lonergan; Some Men by Terrence McNally; By the Way, Meet Vera Stark by Lynn Nottage; eurydice by Sarah Ruhl; Everyday Rapture by Dick Scanlan and Sherie Rene Scott; Let Me Down Easy by Anna Deavere Smith; Saturday Night by Stephen Sondheim; Crowns by Regina Taylor; Uncommon Women and Others by Wendy Wasserstein; Spoils of War by Michael Weller; Before It Hits Home, Jar the Floor and Birdie Blue by Cheryl L. West; Jitney by August Wilson; Lemon Sky, Serenading Louie and Sympathetic Magic by Lanford Wilson; and Metamorphoses and The Notebooks of Leonardo da Vinci by Mary Zimmerman. The company’s more than 130 citations include the 2010 Pulitzer prize for Next to Normal, the 2009 Tony Awards for Best Score, Best Orchestrations, and Best Actress in a Musical (Alice Ripley) for Next to Normal, the 2007 Tony Award for Best Actress in a Play (Julie White, The Little Dog Laughed), 2005 Tony Awards for Best Book of a Musical (Rachel Sheinkin, ...Spelling Bee) and Best Featured Actor in a Musical (Dan Fogler, ...Spelling Bee), 2002 Tony Award for Best Director of a Play (Mary Zimmerman for Metamorphoses), the 2002 Lucille Lortel Award for Outstanding Body of Work, 27 Obie Awards, six Outer Critics Circle Awards, two Clarence Derwent Awards, 12 Drama Desk Awards, nine Theatre World Awards, 14 Lucille Lortel Awards, the NY Drama Critics Circle Award and 15 AUDELCO Awards. In 1999, Second Stage Theatre opened The Tony Kiser Theatre, its state-of-the-art, 296-seat theatre, designed by renowned Dutch architect Rem Koolhaas. In 2002, Second Stage launched “Second Stage Theatre Uptown” series to showcase the work of up and coming artists at the McGinn/Cazale Theatre. The Theatre supports artists through several programs that include residencies, fellowships and commissions, and engages students and community members through education and outreach programs. SECOND STAGE THEATRE AT THE HELEN HAYES Second Stage Theatre has acquired the right to purchase the historic Helen Hayes Theatre, located at 240 W. 44th Street. With this new home, Second Stage will be the only theatre company on Broadway dedicated exclusively to the development and presentation of contemporary American theatrical productions. Second Stage will also become one of only four non-profit theatre companies that own and operate theatres on Broadway. The company will continue to lease and operate their original theatres on the city’s Upper West Side and in Midtown Manhattan. For more information, please visit www.2ST.com | |
| reply to this message | | |
| re: Jon Robin Baitz's THE SUBSTANCE OF FIRE Added to Second Stage Theatre's 35th Anniversary Season | |
| Posted by: | twocents 10:32 am EST 01/21/14 |
| In reply to: | Jon Robin Baitz's THE SUBSTANCE OF FIRE Added to Second Stage Theatre's 35th Anniversary Season - Official_Press_Release 01:15 pm EST 01/17/14 |
|
| |
| Hot stuff! I'm on board with the choice. Hungry to finally see it for the first time. | |
| reply to this message | | |
| Do we really need a revival of THE SUBSTANCE OF FIRE? | |
| Posted by: | BazazzBoy 03:19 pm EST 01/17/14 |
| In reply to: | Jon Robin Baitz's THE SUBSTANCE OF FIRE Added to Second Stage Theatre's 35th Anniversary Season - Official_Press_Release 01:15 pm EST 01/17/14 |
|
| |
| Maybe it's just me, but 2econd Stage seems to be doing a lot of unnecessary revivals of late. "Fire" is a terrific play but it's done with regularity around the country and there is a solid film version available as well. Just my 2-cents, but I think they should be doing new plays by new writers. And isn't that their mandate? I realize these theatre companies have to pay the bills, but too many of them seem to be programming things specifically with an eye toward filling their coffers. (Not that "Fire" is necessarily going to be a cash cow, but it does have some name recognition.) Roundabout's announcement that they're going to be doing "Noises Off" struck me similarly. | |
| reply to this message | reply to first message | |
| re: Do we really need a revival of THE SUBSTANCE OF FIRE? | |
| Posted by: | dlittle 06:32 pm EST 01/17/14 |
| In reply to: | Do we really need a revival of THE SUBSTANCE OF FIRE? - BazazzBoy 03:19 pm EST 01/17/14 |
|
| |
| I could be wrong, but I thought Second Stage actually was created to do revivals of things that should be seen a second time. I am continually surprised to see all the new stuff they do considering that. But, as I said, I could be wrong in my recollection of their purpose. | |
| reply to this message | reply to first message | |
| re: Do we really need a revival of THE SUBSTANCE OF FIRE? | |
| Posted by: | ryhog 08:19 pm EST 01/17/14 |
| In reply to: | re: Do we really need a revival of THE SUBSTANCE OF FIRE? - dlittle 06:32 pm EST 01/17/14 |
|
| |
| It has been discussed here before that, originally, their mission was as you expressed it (and hence, their name), but that at some point, they broadened their stated mission to include new plays as well. | |
| reply to this message | reply to first message | |
| re: Do we really need a revival of THE SUBSTANCE OF FIRE? | |
| Posted by: | Singapore/Fling 05:17 pm EST 01/17/14 |
| In reply to: | Do we really need a revival of THE SUBSTANCE OF FIRE? - BazazzBoy 03:19 pm EST 01/17/14 |
|
| |
| Second Stage has regularly produced new work and revivals of older shows (or occasionally revisions). I don't always love their choices, but they take some big risks with their programming ("Chad Deity" springs to mind), so I don't think it's a bad idea to then balance that out with some safer shows. | |
| reply to this message | reply to first message | |
| re: Do we really need a revival of THE SUBSTANCE OF FIRE? | |
| Posted by: | AC126748 03:48 pm EST 01/17/14 |
| In reply to: | Do we really need a revival of THE SUBSTANCE OF FIRE? - BazazzBoy 03:19 pm EST 01/17/14 |
|
| |
| We don't really "need" a production of anything, but I'm looking forward to this fine play's first revival production. | |
| reply to this message | reply to first message | |
| re: Do we really need a revival of THE SUBSTANCE OF FIRE? | |
| Posted by: | bradmurf 05:17 pm EST 01/17/14 |
| In reply to: | re: Do we really need a revival of THE SUBSTANCE OF FIRE? - AC126748 03:48 pm EST 01/17/14 |
|
| |
| Good. You can have my seat. | |
| reply to this message | reply to first message | |
| re: Do we really need a revival of THE SUBSTANCE OF FIRE? | |
| Posted by: | Thom915 (Thom915@aol.com) 01:35 am EST 01/18/14 |
| In reply to: | re: Do we really need a revival of THE SUBSTANCE OF FIRE? - bradmurf 05:17 pm EST 01/17/14 |
|
| |
| It has been 23 years since The Substance of Fire was produced in New York. A revival is overdue. Its not like some of those plays we seen to get a revival every season. And productions done around the country are not necessarily available to the NY theatergoer. That is one way theater differs from films. I think that Second Stage has done enough new plays that it has earned the right to a revival or two. | |
| reply to this message | reply to first message | |
All That Chat is intended for the discussion of
theatre news and opinion
subject to the terms and conditions of the Terms of Service. (Please take all off-topic discussion to private email.)
Please direct technical questions/comments to webmaster@talkinbroadway.com and policy questions to TBAdmin@talkinbroadway.com.
[ Home | On the Rialto | The Siegel Column | Cabaret | Tony Awards | Book Reviews | Great White Wayback Machine ]
[ Broadway Reviews | Barbara and Scott: The Two of Clubs | Sound Advice | Restaurant Revue | Off Broadway | Funding Talkin' Broadway ]
[ Broadway 101 | Spotlight On | Talkin' Broadway | On the Boards | Regional | Talk to Us! | Search Talkin' Broadway ]
Terms of Service
[ © 1997 - 2014 www.TalkinBroadway.com, Inc. ]
Time to render: 0.283115 seconds.